


Don't Mess With Water

by Codeadleaf (Caeliindyvo)



Category: Tales of Zestiria
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-17
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-10-11 20:38:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17453897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caeliindyvo/pseuds/Codeadleaf
Summary: "And now Rose is tired. Hungry, thanks to Edna constant talking about shrimps. Sick of ghost hellions. Done with nerding nerds. Bored out of her mind. So bored she might as well have lost all patience and sanity. Sitting at their improvised camp near the lake, she keeps wondering if chanting Lailah’s true name to herself could work as an anti-ghost charm."A bored Rose is a dangerous being.





	Don't Mess With Water

**Author's Note:**

> A bit late, but here's my Zinestiria entry!  
> This was my first time participating in a zine and I will forever be grateful for being allowed to be part of this project. Lot of love for the mods, the contributors and those who ordered the zine <3

Rose is bored. And tired. And oh so sick of haunted caves. 

Entering the Cambria Caverns had been nice at first. Sure, it was a bit cold and windy, but it was far better than walking in the rain, with their clothes sticking to their skin and their boots ever so often slipping on muddy roads. Sorey and Mikleo were excited, happily rambling about secret passageways and not wasting any time exploring the opposite path to Gododdin, completely ignoring the Rolancian soldiers’ warnings. It had been fun to watch (though she still doesn’t get what was to be excited about).

Until the floor had collapsed under their feet and ghosts had greeted them among the rocks. Freaking ghost hellions. She won’t lie, armatizing and burning them down with fire artes had been satisfying (and so had been the slightly terrified looks on the boys’ faces after she had done so while shrieking). She then suggested that Edna should build them a path out of the hole but the nerds had been quick to discard the idea. Something about messing with the caverns natural structure or whatever. Honestly who cares about that, there are ghosts and ugly centipedes popping from every corner, how could anyone not choose the easiest and fastest way to get out? And so they had kept on exploring, Rose sticking close to Lailah (for warmth and emergency ghosts eradication), Sorey carefully packing his cloak away to avoid potential damages, ready to tackle any obstacles before Mikleo. Goodbye sweet distracting cloak, tracing your funny patterns was a nice way to spend time, one day she will give you the attention you deserve.

All of this was too much for Rose. Thankfully Dezel had eventually gotten annoyed by the situation (or maybe was it her constant shrieking at wraiths, who can tell) and had swept in, tucking both Rose and Sorey under his arms to fly them above an umpteenth pit, leaving no room for arguments. She had thought the worst was behind. 

But no. They had had yet to overcome the biggest obstacle possible. A gigantic monstrous fossil. It actually had managed to distract her a little. Only for it to be ruined by nerd talking. Hours of nerdy debates, hours of unverifiable theories, until Edna’s loud complaints had put an end to it. Well okay, maybe not hours but it sure had felt like it. 

And now Rose is tired. Hungry, thanks to Edna constant talking about shrimps. Sick of ghost hellions. Done with nerding nerds. Bored out of her mind. So bored she might as well have lost all patience and sanity. Sitting at their improvised camp near the lake, she keeps wondering if chanting Lailah’s true name to herself could work as an anti-ghost charm. At least this part of the caverns is nice; the daylight filtering through the hole in the roof and the absence of rain comforts her a little. 

Lailah and Dezel are sitting next to her, discussing which of the perishable food they should use for today’s dinner. Edna is supervising them and throwing in suggestions, like catching some bats or snakes to cook while looking straight at Dezel and waiting for the animals lover seraph to get offended. It doesn’t work. Not fun…

Rose stretches her legs in front of her, eyes searching for any kind of distraction. Sorey’s bag is lying open next to her, his precious book on top of the shepherd’s cloak. She considers hiding the book, before shaking her head. The plan would definitely backfire and result in turning back for more cave exploring with a panicked Sorey. Where is he anyway? That book is like an extension of his body; the fact he left it behind is so unnatural she could think it’s some kind of bad omen.

She turns toward the lake, and there he is, hovering close to Mikleo. Well, of course he is, glued to his second body extension. Rose snickers to herself. A bit creepily she has to admit. Dear lords she’s so out of it she’s starting to spook herself out. 

They stand near the water, Mikleo pointing at something on the small island. An old chest. 

Now that is interesting! Rose jumps to her feet to join them, hoping that whatever that chest contains will make it up for the awful past hours. The boys are already in deep conversation about what could be in there. Rose rolls her eyes. Why even waste time debating the subject when they can just go open it? She opens her mouth to point it out when they start arguing about why the chest is there and who could possibly have left it. And the nerding happens again. 

Nope. Too much nerding. She can’t take this anymore. 

“I wonder if there’s a path somewhere,” muses Sorey out loud. 

Oh there is one. Rose has it all figured out, and she will gladly show him the way. A devious smile crosses her face, hands extending toward Sorey, and she moves to shove him-

“This way, “starts Sorey, making a step on the right, unknowingly escaping his fate. 

Mikleo takes the blow, and Rose’s smile falls. 

SPLASH. 

She freezes. Utter silence. Sorey looks bewildered. 

One beat. Two beats. 

Mikleo breaks through the surface, panicking, limbs thrashing to maintain his head above the water before going still, realizing it’s not deep enough for him to drown. 

Rose burst out laughing. A water seraph who can’t swim. This is so absurd, her belly’s hurts (she can hear Edna’s voice in the background most certainly mocking Mikleo’s glorious abilities).

Slowly, Mikleo turns toward her, bangs falling onto his face, circlet askew. 

Rose senses danger, laugher immediately dying in her throat. 

“It’s his fault,” she points at Sorey. 

“What!? No!” 

“He dodged me!” 

“I didn’t! Mikle-”

Cold water hits Rose and Sorey’s heads, both yelping. Mikleo is glaring at them, left hand raised in front of him. 

“Oh my,” comes Lailah’s voice behind them.

Water drips on Rose’s face. She looks at Sorey, Sorey looks at her, they share a nod. 

This is war. 

She swiftly takes off her jacket, seeing her partner simultaneously throw his shirt away out of the corner of her eye. Hair beads and feather earrings fall to the ground and they jump without further thought. 

“Cold!!” is the first word out of Rose’s mouth when she surfaces, clear water reaching her shoulders.

She pushes back her hair, Sorey splashing at Mikleo who remains unfazed. Right, throwing water at a water seraph isn’t the best plan, luckily Sorey already has a new one. He wiggles his fingers, slowly making his way to the seraph. Mikleo recoils, readying his next artes. Rose doesn’t waste time and dives. She swims as fast as she can (thinking about it, she should have take off her shoes), and emerges directly behind Mikleo’s back to slip her arms under his, effectively blocking any counter attack. 

“Wha-”

“Go for it Sorey!”

Sorey smirks and grabs at Mikleo’s sides, showing no mercy. The seraph is soon reduced to a wrestling, laughing mess. This is way too easy, she thinks (though she’s not sure how Sorey manages to counter the belt barrier, his fingers must have found a way between them or under the shirt). Who would have thought it was that simple to restrain a seraph immersed in his own element?

“This is what you get for unfairly attacking us!”

“You started it!” shout Mikleo, his indignant tone drowned by laughter, legs attempting to push Sorey away.

Nope, Rose won’t let him. She pushes her feet off the ground, propelling both of them toward the deeper part of the lake, before letting go and taking his circlet in one motion. Mikleo yelps and paddles back to where he can touch the ground. He’s trapped. Between Sorey waiting for him in the shallow parts and Rose waving her catch out of his reach, there no way he can escape or take back the upper hand. 

Until he summons his staff. 

Sorey’s smile wavers. Uh. Maybe messing with water was a bad idea after all. 

When they finally crash on the shore though, breathing hard and shivering, she doesn’t feel any regrets (and Dezel’s scolding face won’t change that).

“We did it Sorey!” she exclaims between two heavy breaths, on her hands and knees. “We survived against a water seraph in his element, victory is ours!”

Sorey is lying on his back, lips blue, body too weak to manage more than a thumbs up and some laugher. Mikleo stands a few steps away, clothes seemingly dry and a bubble of water hovering above his hand. Wait that’s a neat trick, she should find a way to exploit-

“Wah!” 

The bubble explodes on her head.

“I don’t care I’m already drenched!! You lose Mikleo!”

Mikleo huffs, chin up and arms crossed, Sorey laughs harder, and Rose loudly sneezes. 

She’s exhausted, hungry, cold, but at last boredom has been defeated. 

Worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> And then Rose catches a cold and Dezel lectures the children.


End file.
